Review by Brian McLean
The vintage Judas Priest show that was originally released in VHS format as Judas Priest Live in the 1980’s and then as a bonus DVD with the 2004 Metalogy box set has now been released as an individual DVD titled Live Vengeance’82 through Legacy Music Video.
The concert footage filmed in Memphis during the band’s 1982 tour supporting their breakthrough album Screaming for Vengeance captures the Priest while they were receiving massive airplay for “You Got Another Thing Comin’” on radio and MTV. The success Judas Priest received from the single allowed the band to play larger venues instead of the mid size coliseums and theaters as on previous tours.
The set list has Judas Priest touching on all American released studio albums up to the time in their career except for Rocka Roll and Stained Class. The compilation of classic Priest tunes will satisfy even the pickiest of fans.
If there was a gripe logged, it would be that the song “Beyond the Realms of Death” from the Stained Class album was not included in the set. The song is considered one of the upper end classics from this era of Judas Priest but the band makes up with other classics like “Victims of Changes,” “Sinner,” “Diamonds and Rust,” “Hell Bent for Leather,” “The Green Manalishi,” as well as “Living after Midnight” and “You Got Another Thing Comin’," two of the more familiar songs to the unseasoned Priest fan of the time.
For the tour, the band had a decent stage set up complete with ramps and numerous Marshall stack lined up on various levels of the stage. The lasers were state of the art at the time but primitive when compared to today’s technology. Yet, it’s things like the lasers that put this footage into the vintage status.
The DVD is strictly the live show, there’s no bonus material as interviews or behind the scenes material from the tour, but there is a discography of the band’s material up to the Screaming for Vengeance album.
The release of Live Vengeance ’82 was a great move and the fans that were not able to shell out the funds for the Metalogy box set can now rejoice in the name of the Judas Priest.